Master Your Files in OS X Mavericks

Files are the foundation of working within OS X, and you can make them work to your advantage. Jeff Carlson shows you how to share, copy, move and delete files, goes over Finder essentials, and explains how to find files with Spotlight.

This chapter is from the book

This chapter is from the book

In my years of using and teaching about the Mac, I’ve run across people who are quite adept in some areas, like using a particular program, but lack some core knowledge about how the computer works. It’s as if they missed the first day of a “How to Use Your Mac” class and never caught up with their homework. Ask them to build a spreadsheet in Excel and it’s no problem; ask them to locate that Excel file and they’re utterly lost.

It’s not their fault. No one ever said, “Go learn how a hierarchical file-system works.” Instead, they learned how to accomplish a specific task—build a spreadsheet, enhance a photo, read email. And in most cases, those tasks involve files. Files are the foundation of working within OS X, and you can make them work to your advantage.

Your Home Folder

OS X is filled with files and folders, but you can ignore most of them. In fact, Apple recommends you not explore the System folder and other areas that contain crucial system files. Instead, OS X gives every user account a Home folder for storing personal files (Figure 4.1).

Access the Home folder in the Finder by creating a new window (choose File > New Finder Window, or press Command-N) or by choosing Go > Home (Command-Shift-H). You can also click your account name in the sidebar of any Finder window.

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The Arrangement button () in the toolbar of every Finder window enables you to arrange the files by criteria such as date modified or size, or to group by application.

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Longtime OS X users may notice something missing in Figure 4.1: the Library folder. Apple chose to hide the Library folder, presumably to prevent people from accidentally editing or deleting important files used by the operating system. The folder isn’t gone, though. To access it, hold Option and click the Go menu in the Finder—Library shows up in the list.

Aside from that exception, the Home folder is yours to use. Feel free to create new folders (choose File > New Folder, or press Command-Shift-N) or stash other files here; it all depends on your level of organizational tolerance. (I like to stick to the basics and avoid clutter—a huge surprise considering the disheveled state of the physical desk in my office.)

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Don’t rename or move the folders in your Home folder. Many applications (especially Apple’s) store files there. For example, iTunes keeps your music library in a subfolder within the Music folder; if you move it, you could lose track of your songs and videos. (However, you can choose to relocate the iTunes library; see Chapter 7 for details.)